It Was Love
by alohamora080
Summary: They were as unalike in both looks and temperament as two sisters could possibly be. Yet, both shared one striking likeness: they knew love when they saw it.


Blaise smirked at her in the hallway. He mocked her, teased her, and taunted her. He would lightly finger her blonde curls and sneer at their pale color. He would roll his eyes every time she talked. He would mimic her Scottish accent. He would do simply anything and everything he could to lower her self-esteem. And she _hated_ it.

Daphne was a sweet girl. She rarely ever got hysterical, and forgiveness was always her first priority. And, for this, everyone liked her. She had few enemies and was rarely involved in anything even the least bit blasphemous.

But she lost all of these morals where Blaise Zabini was concerned.

Whatever had prompted the boy to be so utterly obnoxious to her, from the first time they met, she could never fathom. She had never done _anything_ to make him detest her so. Yet, he always found some method by which to infuriate her. And worse, it seemed to delight him as much as it irritated her.

Daphne often found it rather peculiar that the Sorting Hat had placed her in Slytherin. After all, she possessed next to none of the necessary qualities. But Blaise…well, he was a Slytherin, to the very core.

Perhaps it was their conflicting personalities that pitted them against each other so often. Blaise was cunning, intuitive, and devious. Daphne, on the other hand, was sweet-tempered, naïve, and painfully incompetent at standing up for herself.

It was Blaise who always stood up for her, in the end.

Their romantic linkage wasn't a sudden turn of events. It was slow-moving and punctuated by various juvenile spats and pettifogs. But, gradually, their vile arguments dimmed to flirtatious exchanges; their sporadic physical fights were replaced by tight hugs; and the lurid glares became shy glances.

They still fought regularly, usually over something completely ridiculous, such as the whereabouts of Daphne's favorite hairbrush or the absence of roast chicken (Blaise's favorite dish) at the dinner table. But, for every argument, there was a sincere apology. For every bad day, a hug, to make it better. And for every tear shed, a kiss, to heal the wound.

And Daphne knew, it was love.

Astoria often saw herself as the "Blaise" in her relationship with Draco. Draco was an undeniably sly personality, but Astoria…she was undoubtedly worse. She could subdue even a troll with that one glare of hers.

But no one could ever reckon on her heart of gold. Shrewd and curt as she might be, once a person earned her affections, Astoria would go to any length to protect them, even if it meant sacrificing her own life. To earn her affections, however, was no easy task to carry out.

And Astoria often considered Draco lucky, in the fact that he had even succeeded in doing so.

Their first proper meeting was in Hogsmeade, several years after the fall of Voldemort.

She strolled into the Three Broomsticks, chatting and laughing with her sister and Blaise. They sat down at a table beside the door, and, out of the corner of her eye, Astoria noticed a hooded man surreptitiously enter the bar after them. He stumbled to the far back of the room, away from everyone's prying eyes.

Astoria's brows furrowed as the man mumbled his order to Rosmerta, who glowered at him, sniffed, stuck her nose in the air, and stalked off. There was something very familiar about him, something which intrigued Astoria. She wished she could see his face…

Suddenly, and as though he noticed her gaze upon him, his head snapped in her direction, and he shook his hood back. A pair of very familiar grey eyes found hers, and recognition flashed across Astoria's brain.

She and Draco had barely spoken two words at school, nor had she ever wanted to. From what she'd heard from Daphne before starting Hogwarts, he was regarded as the Prince of Slytherin, and that it was best to stay completely out of his way. And, upon reaching Hogwarts, Astoria quickly learned what Daphne had meant. He pranced through the corridors of Hogwarts as though he owned them, with that stupid, little smirk plastered to his face and those two thickheaded goons at his shoulders. Astoria always had to stifle a snort when she saw him parading loftily down the hallway.

But now…there was something different in his expression, Astoria realized, not tearing her eyes away from Draco's face. There was a sad, almost broken, bearing in his grey eyes, and Astoria felt something stir within her.

She gazed at him, heart hammering against her ribs. And without so much as a word to her sister and brother-in-law, Astoria stood up suddenly and strolled towards his table. Sweeping her dark hair behind her shoulders, Astoria sat down opposite him, studying him intently through her dark eyes.

Then, she grinned at him. He cocked the head to the side, smiling thoughtfully, and she could feel her heart fluttering inexplicably in her chest.

And she knew, in that single instant, it was love.

* * *

Hello my lovelies! :D It's just me, dabbling in the lives of some lesser known characters: The Greengrass sisters. I'm still trying to perfect their character designs. Tell me what you think!


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